Sun City: A Musical Force Against Apartheid – Part 2

Essential Question

What was South African apartheid, and how did musicians unite to challenge it?

Overview

South African apartheid was widely condemned in the international community. In the United States, civil rights groups such as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) sponsored boycotts against the South African government. By 1952, only four years after the policy was instated, the United Nations (UN) created a commission to research apartheid and draft policy recommendations.

As the South African government struggled to maintain the system, the violence of apartheid proved hard to ignore. In 1960, police opened fire on a non-violent protest in the town of Sharpeville, killing 70 unarmed people. The Sharpeville Massacre inspired organizations worldwide to boycott and condemn the apartheid regime. Most notably among these organizations was the International Olympic Committee, which banned South Africa from participating in the Olympics.

In response to these boycotts, the South African government ratified the Black Homeland Citizenship Act in 1970, which divided South Africa into a variety of independent homelands for blacks. On the surface, it appeared as if the South African government was giving blacks political representation in their own cities and states, but in truth the Homeland Citizenship Act simply continued apartheid. By making blacks citizens of their own supposed homelands and not citizens of South Africa, the apartheid government could strip blacks of voting rights while still proclaiming South Africa a democratic country. After the Act was ratified, blacks were forcibly relocated to the homelands, and to survive they had to work as migrant workers in large cities, which continued to be controlled by the white minority.

Violence continued into the 1970s. In 1976, South African police responded to nonviolent protests in the town of Soweto with force. In the countrywide protests that followed police killed 600 people, many of them students. College students in America who watched news coverage of the violence in Soweto now saw themselves in the struggle against apartheid, and many demanded their universities divest from South African businesses. By 1985, over 60 U.S. colleges and universities divested from anything connected with South Africa, while large companies like Citibank and PepsiCo also began removing their investments in the country. Religious organizations such as the World Council of Churches similarly spoke out against apartheid, and one of the most prominent Anti-apartheid voices to emerge during this period was Desmond Tutu, an archbishop who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984.

As awareness of apartheid spread, many musicians began taking notice. Artists such as Gil Scott-Heron, Peter Gabriel, Jerry Dammers, and Stevie Wonder used their music to speak out against apartheid, and drew upon their popularity to get people to listen. At the same time, many musicians continued to perform and earn large sums of money in South Africa, particularly at the resort casino known as “Sun City.”

Guitarist and producer Steven Van Zandt traveled to South Africa two times in the early 1980s and was stunned by the inhumanity of apartheid. He visited the Sun City resort–Queen was performing–and, unlike most Americans, also traveled the short distance to the “Homeland” of Bophuthatswana at which many of the black Sun City employees resided. Van Zandt recalled in his Sun City book, “[Bophuthatswana is] very desolate, there’s no work, no schools, no agriculture, no hospitals, nothing.” Upon his return to the States, Van Zandt discovered that Americans were largely unaware of the the South African situation, and governmental leaders continued to adhere to a policy of “constructive engagement” with the South African government, which disallowed political or economic action against the country. “I got involved not just because I thought it was the right thing to do,” Van Zandt stated in an interview, “but because my government was on the wrong side, and nobody knew about apartheid.”

Van Zandt believed the best way to confront apartheid was through a cultural boycott among artists, which would operate similar to the sports boycott. Over several months in 1985, Van Zandt and producer Arthur Baker organized Artists United Against Apartheid (AUAA), a remarkably eclectic group of 54 musicians from several countries. They recorded the full Sun City album, produced a music video, a book, and filmed a documentary that combined their music performances with information about the plight of South Africans.

Van Zandt hoped the project would raise awareness of apartheid in South Africa and funds for the anti-apartheid movement. Moreover, Van Zandt saw the potential of the AUAA to instigate a cultural boycott against South Africa. When Lou Reed, Bruce Springsteen, Afrika Bambaataa, Run-D.M.C and dozens of other popular artists all sing, “I ain’t gonna play Sun City,” on the chorus of “Sun City,” who else will? Van Zandt and his collaborators wanted “Sun City” to inspire popular musicians to avoid all of South Africa, not just the resort.

The Sun City album reached #31 on the Billboard album charts, raising over a million dollars for anti-apartheid causes. The video for the song “Sun City” was frequently played on MTV and BET, which galvanized people across the United States who had been unaware of, or previously uninterested in apartheid. As Van Zandt stated, “I was able to measure [the album’s] success by the fact that the son and daughters [of Congresspeople] came home saying, ‘What’s this South Africa thing, Daddy? Whats going on?’ because they were seeing it on MTV and BET.”

In 1986, Congress passed the Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act, levying sanctions on South Africa that would be lifted only when the government ended Apartheid. Culturally, economically, and politically isolated, the South African government soon began to dissolve apartheid laws. Many consider the 1994 election of Nelson Mandela, who had been imprisoned by the South African government for 27 years, the true end of apartheid. By initiating a conversation about apartheid and the United State’s responsibility in confronting it, Van Zandt’s project accelerated the decline of the apartheid in South Africa. “We saved a couple years of murder,” Van Zandt asserts.

In Part 2 of this lesson, students view clips from the Sun City documentary and explore how musicians united to challenge apartheid. In a group setting, students will consider the various strategies activists, corporations, and other governments used to isolate the South African government and hasten the end of apartheid. Finally, students consider how apartheid relates to segregation in the United States.

Images

Activities

Motivational Activity:

Print out Images 1-6. Place images 1-3 on one side of the room, images 4-6 on the other side. Sun City paid exorbitant sums to American and British entertainers. Tell students that they will recreate musician Steven Van Zandt’s early 1980s visit to South Africa, and as a class they will be imagining what he might have seen there. Inform students that on one side of the classroom they will see “bantustans,” where thousands of Black South Africans were forced to live during apartheid. On the other side of the classroom, they will see images of Sun City, a resort and casino in the bantustan of Bophuthatswana. Sun City paid exorbitant sums to American and British entertainers who performed at the resort. Have students circulate and examine the images, and then ask the class:

Based on these images, what conclusions might you draw about life in South Africa during apartheid?

How might have people lived, worked, and made money?

Do you think everyone had access to opportunities such as education and careers?

As a musician from the United States, how might Steven Van Zandt work to change the situation he witnessed in South Africa?

Procedure:

Have students present their homework activity from Part 1 to the class. Ask students:

What sort of strategies did you think of as potential ways to fight apartheid?

How might such strategies be effective?

What roadblocks might these strategies face?

Explain to students that in the following activity they will be examining some of the strategies musicians used to confront apartheid. Split students into small groups, and pass out Handout 2 – Songs Against Apartheid Questionsto each student group, as well as one of the four song descriptions found in Handout 3 – Songs Against Apartheid(student groups should be answering the same questions on Handout 2 for one of the songs discussed in Handout 3). Once they have completed the questions on the handouts, ask each group to share their responses with the class. Then ask students:

What are some of the differences between all these examples (students might mention the musical approach, what aspect of apartheid is tackled in the song, or how the artist first learned about apartheid).

What are some similarities between all these examples? (students might mention the shared desire of musicians to educate the audience about apartheid).

Show students Clip 1, Sun City Music Video, explaining that the song was another example of a way a musician confronted apartheid. Ask students:

How might you describe the message of the lyrics?

Do you feel the song informs people about apartheid? Why or why not?

What music genres do you see represented in this video? How might the breadth of collaborations be significant to the message of the song?

Imagine it is 1985 and you have never heard of apartheid. What did you learn watching this video? Do you think the video would influence your thoughts about apartheid? If so, how might you respond?

In what ways might have the video helped confront apartheid?

Split students into small groups, and distribute Handout 4 – Strategies Against Apartheid, with each group receiving one of the four strategy descriptions. Have each group read their handout and prepare to present a summary of the information to the class. Then, discuss the strategies found on Handout 3 as a class. Ask students:

In what ways might these strategies and examples pose a challenge to a large body like the apartheid government of South Africa?

In what ways might the four strategies presented be complimentary to each other?

How does the author argue “Sun City” was different than other benefit albums, such as “We are the World” and “Do They Know It’s Christmas”? (Encourage students to think about the differing emotions “Sun City” brought up, and the ways it directly addressed political issues that the other benefit songs did not).

How does Morello claim “Sun City” effectively helped end apartheid?

Why would Morello say the song featured perhaps the “most revolutionary gathering of artists ever heard on a recording”? (Encourage students to think about the variety of genres and musicians featured in the song).

How does Morello see the song having continued relevance? What did he do to the song to address more contemporary issues?

Summary Activity:

What might Steven Van Zandt be suggesting when he says the struggle of South Africans is also “our struggle”?

How might confronting apartheid also reveal issues of racism in the United States?

What do you think Steven Van Zandt might have meant by suggesting that through Sun City he is trying to “break down our own apartheid right here”?

What strategies did Van Zandt draw upon to break cultural barriers in the United States? (Encourage students to think about the diversity of musicians that Steven Van Zandt gathered for the project, in particular that rap was a new, and often controversial genre at the time.)

In what ways do races continue to be separated United States? (Encourage students to think about racially segregated neighborhoods, schools, etc.). What might be done to further eradicate these separations?

Handouts

Standards

New Jersey State Standards

New Jersey State Learning Standards for English Language Arts: Reading

NJSLSA.R1: Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly and to make logical inferences and relevant connections from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.

NJSLSA.R6: Assess how point of view or purpose shapes the content and style of a text.

NJSLSA.R8: Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.

NJSLSA.R9: Analyze how two or more texts address similar themes or topics in order to build knowledge or to compare the approaches the authors take.

New Jersey State Learning Standards for English Language Arts: Writing

NJSLSA.W1: Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.

NJSLSA.W7: Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects, utilizing an inquiry-based research process, based on focused questions, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.

NJSLSA.W9: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.

New Jersey State Learning Standards for English Language Arts: Speaking and Listening

NJSLSA.SL1: Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.

NJSLSA.SL2: Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.

New York State Standards

New York State Next Generation English Language Arts Learning StandardsReading Anchor Standards

Key Ideas and Details

Standard 1: Read closely to determine what the text says explicitly/implicitly and make logical inferences from it; cite specific textual evidence when writing or speaking to support conclusions drawn from the text.

Craft and Structure

Standard 4: Interpret words and phrases as they are used in a text, including determining technical, connotative, and figurative meanings, and analyze how specific word choices shape meaning or tone.

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas Standard

Standard 8: Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, including the validity of the reasoning as well as the relevance and sufficiency of the evidence.

Writing Anchor Standards

Text Types and Purposes

Standard 1: Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.

Standard 3: Evaluate a speakers point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric.

Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas

Standard 4: Present information, findings, and supporting evidence so that listeners can follow the line of reasoning. Ensure that the organization, development, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.

Common Core State Standards

College and Career Readiness Reading Anchor Standards for Grades 6-12 for Literature and Informational Text

Reading 7: Integrate and evaluate content presented in diverse formats and media, including visually and quantitatively, as well as in words.

College and Career Readiness Writing Anchor Standards for Grades 6-12 in English Language Arts and Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science and Technical Subjects

Writing 1: Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.

Writing 9: Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection, and research.

College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Speaking and Listening for Grades 6-12

Speaking and Listening 2: Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.

Speaking and Listening 3: Evaluate a speakers point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric.

College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Language for Grades 6-12

Language 6: Acquire and use accurately a range of general academic and domain-specific words and phrases sufficient for reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the college and career readiness level; demonstrate independence in gathering vocabulary knowledge when encountering an unknown term important to comprehension or expression.

Social Studies – National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS)

Theme 1: Culture

Theme 2: Time, Continuity, and Change

Theme 4: Individual Development and Identity

Theme 5: Individuals, Groups, and Institutions

Theme 9: Global Connections

National Standards for Music Education

Core Music Standard: Responding

Analyze: Analyze how the structure and context of varied musical works inform the response.

Interpret: Support interpretations of musical works that reflect creators’ and/or performers’ expressive intent.

Evaluate: Support evaluations of musical works and performances based on analysis, interpretation, and established criteria.

Core Music Standard: Connecting

Connecting 11: Relate musical ideas and works to varied contexts and daily life to deepen understanding.

National Core Arts Standards

Responding

Anchor Standard 7: Perceive and analyze artistic work.

Anchor Standard 8: Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work.

Anchor Standard 9: Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work.

Connecting

Anchor Standard 10: Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art.